Republican candidate: ‘The rape thing’ doesn’t justify abortion

Republican John Koster, who is running for Congress in Washington state, said over the weekend that “the rape thing” did not justify a woman’s right to terminate her pregnancy.

When asked about his view of abortion at a Sunday fundraiser, Koster said the practice should be prohibited unless the life of the mother is in danger. He said it shouldn’t be allowed in cases of rape or incest.

“Incest is so rare, I mean it’s so rare,” Koster explained. “But the rape thing, you know, I know a woman who was raped and kept the child, gave it up for adoption and doesn’t regret it. In fact, she’s a big pro-life proponent. But, on the rape thing it’s like, how does putting more violence onto a woman’s body and taking the life of an innocent child that’s a consequence of this crime, how does that make it better?”

Koster added that “crime has consequences” and that “killing a child” wouldn’t make up for it.

His comments were recorded by the liberal group Fuse Washington and uploaded to YouTube on Wednesday.

The congressional hopeful has previously served three terms in the Washington state House. Koster’s campaign website states he has a “100% pro-life voting record.”

Koster’s campaign manager Larry Stickney told the Associated Press that the GOP candidate has urged tough punishments for sex offenders and that he took the issue seriously.

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Eric W. Dolan has served as an editor for Raw Story since August 2010,
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